Joe Renteria Movies
- 2002
Tensions of a mostly racial nature erupt between two African-American staffers at the ER, the mild-mannered Michael Gallant (Sharif Atkins) and the outspoken Gregory Pratt (Mekhi Phifer). Pratt foments the hostility when he interferes in Gallant's treatment of a suicidal soldier. But when a hypochondriac (Diane Delano) is refused treatment by Dr. Kayson (Sam Anderson) for what seems to be a genuine ailment, Pratt holds his tongue -- with fatal consequences for the patient. Now it is Gallant's turn to unleash his anger at Pratt, a confrontation with long-ranging ramifications. Elsewhere, a distracted Weaver (Laura Innes) makes a disastrous error while demonstrating flu shots on a TV news program, and Carter (Noah Wyle) again confronts Abby (Maura Tierney) about her alcohol problems. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
The true story of the formation of the Texas Rangers provides the backdrop for this youth-oriented Western. In 1875, after the Civil War, Leander McNelly (Dylan McDermott) organizes the Texas Rangers to battle the outlaws terrorizing Texas, notably crime kingpin John King Fisher (Alfred Molina). With a team of experienced gunmen (Robert Patrick and Randy Travis) and enthusiastic but green recruits (James Van Der Beek, Usher Raymond, and Ashton Kutcher), McNelly and his Rangers bring law and order to the wild Texas plains; McNelly must also keep order among his charges when two rangers fall in love with the same woman, Caroline Dukes (Rachael Leigh Cook). Tom Skerritt and Vincent Spano are also featured in the supporting cast; the screenplay, adapted from a script by John Milius, was at one time set to be filmed by Sam Peckinpah, shortly before the legendary Western director's death in 1984. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Van Der Beek, Dylan McDermott, (more)
- 1990
McCall (Stepfanie Kramer) comes home to find that her young Latino cleaning woman has been murdered. Curiously, the woman's body shows signs of torture--torture that obviously occurred several years earlier. Investigating, Hunter (Fred Dryer) manages to link the murder to an outwardly respectable Los Angeles businessman with secret ties to a brutal Latin American dictatorship ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
In Marked for Death, Steven Seagal is told to "try to find the gentle person inside yourself." But he doesn't spend too much time looking, preferring instead to crack the spines of his victims. Seagal plays John Hatcher, a burned-out narcotics agent who resigns from the Drug Enforcement Administration after his partner is killed. He returns to his hometown and finds the city in the thrall of a vicious Jamaican drug gang, led by the nasty Screwface (Basil Wallace). He meets an old friend, now a high school football coach, who tells John about losing his best player and his 13-year-old nephew to drug overdoses. Soon John's family is threatened and his prize Mustang stolen, so John joins forces with his buddy to take on Screwface and the drug gang themselves. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steven Seagal, Basil Wallace, (more)
- 1985
Created by Stephen J. Cannell, the made-for-TV Stingray combines choice elements from such past successes as Knight Rider, The Lone Ranger, and (stylistically, at least) Miami Vice. Nick Mancuso stars as the title character, a mysterious good samaritan who has apparently named himself after his jazzed-up car. In the course of events, Stingray foils the plans of an insane doctor, scuttles the operation of a drug-and-vice lord, and locates a missing child using ingenuity, brute force, and a variety of disguises. All he asks in return from the people he helps is that they will someday do a favor for him -- at any time, at any place. Robyn Douglass costars as Stingray's lady love, Deputy D.A. Daphne Delgado (who probably sells seashells by the seashore). Originally broadcast July 14, 1985, on NBC, Stingray was blatantly the pilot for a weekly TV series, which ran from March 4, 1986, to July 31, 1987. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nick Mancuso
- 1975
Harris Yulin guest stars as Detective Grissom, a law enforcement officer who is more interested in self-glorification than in justice. Grissom's insatiable thirst for fame proves to be a royal pain for his temporary partner, undercover cop Tony Baretta (Robert Blake). In his efforts to catch a gun dealer who sells to teens, Baretta is constantly flustered by Grissom's egomaniacal interference. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Robert Blake, Edward Grover, (more)
- 1974
Telecast April 17, 1974, Nakia was the pilot film for the shortlived ABC drama series of the same name. In the tradition of Billy Jack, Native American deputy sheriff Nakia Parker (Robert Fortier) tries to protect his people from the machinations of villainous whites. In this instance, Nakia stands up against an insensitive city council which plans to sell a historic mission to an evil land developer (is there any other kind on TV?) Nakia was filmed on location in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as was the weekly series itself, which ran from September 21 to December 28, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
